Ecology

• What is an ecosystem? The interaction between a community of living organisms and their environment.
• What are the different levels of organisation in an ecosystem? [3] - Individual organisms - Populations - Communities
• What is required by organisms to survive and reproduce? - Certain resources from their habitats and the other living organisms there.
• What do plants in a community or habitat compete with each other? [3] - Light - Water space - Mineral ions in the soil
• What do animals often compete for with each other? [3] - Food - Mates - Territory
• As well as competing for food with each other, why do species rely on each other? [4] - Food - Shelter - Pollination - Seed dispersal
• Because of interdependence what happens to the community you when you remove one species from a habitat? It will affect the whole community
• What is a stable community? All the species and enviromental factors are in balance so the population sizes stay constant
• What are examples of stable communities? [2] - Tropical Rainforests - Ancient oak woodlands
• What is abiotic? Nonliving
• What is biotic? Living
• What are examples of abiotic factors? [7] - Light intensity - Temperature - Moisture levels - Soil pH and mineral content - Wind intensity and direction - Carbon dioxide levels for plants - Oxygen levels for aquatic animals
• What are examples of biotic factors? [4] - Availability of food - New predators arriving - New pathogens/diseases - One species outcompeting another
• What are adaptations? Features
• What do adaptations do to organisms?` It enable them to survive in the conditions in which they live
• What may adapatations be? [3] - Structural - Behavioural - Functional
• What are extremophiles? Organisms that live in enviroments that are very extreme e.g with high temperature, pressure or salt concentration
• What are examples of extremophiles? - Bacteria living in deep-sea vents
• What is a population? A group of organisms from one species living in a habitat
• How do scientists estimate the size of a population? By using a square frame quadrat for sampling
• How can you see how plants are spread or distributed in a habitat? [3] 1. Strech a transect tape across the area 2. Place a quadrat down at the regular intervals along the line 3. Count the plants in the quadrat each time
• Why do all materials in the living world need to be recycled? So that they can be used again in future organisms
• What does the carbon cycle describe? How carbon is recycled in nature.
• Why does the carbon cycle rely on decomposers? So they can return carbon to the atmosphere, as carbon dioxide through respiration
• What is the main process in the carbon cycle that removes carbon dioxide from the air called? Photosynthesis
• What would happen to carbon dioxide levels in the air if any action reduecs photosynthesis? Could lead to an increase
• What does the water cycle describe? How fresh water circulates between living organisms, rivers and sea.
• What is responsible in plants for returning how much of the water to the air? Transpiration
• What happens to the water cycle as you cut down large areas of the forest? It can disturb the cycle
• How can feeding relationships in a community be shown? By food chains
• What do all food chains begin with? A producer
• What does a producer synthesis? Molecules
• What is the prodoucer usually? A green plant
• Which molecules are made by a producer and how? Glucose molecules by photosynthesis
• What are produces eaten by? Primary consumers
• What are primary consumers eaten by? Seconday consumers
• What are seconday consumers eaten by? Tertiary consumers
• What are consumers called if they eat other animals? Predators
• What are animals eaten called? Prey
• What are top consumers called? Apex Predator